And the Heat president delivered a strongly worded message for Heat superstar LeBron James in the wake of the team's NBA Finals loss to the San Antonio Spurs.

"This stuff is hard. And you got to stay together, if you've got the guts. And you don't find the first door and run out of it," Riley said Thursday at his annual end-of-the-season news conference.

In an impressive rant – it was classic Riles – that covered several topics, including keeping James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh together, sun tans in South Beach, the song Just Once by James Ingram, vinyl records, scotch, the Heat's willingness to pay the NBA's luxury tax, the media and the Spurs.

It was an epic 55-minute performance, a one-man show and Riley, who rarely speaks on the record to news reporters, spewed fire with a preacher's passion. He started the news conference with a nod to the Twitter generation.

He continued: "I think everybody needs to get a grip. Media, Heat players, organization, all of our fans. You gotta get a grip on greatness and on teams."

The big takeaway: Riley challenged James to stay with Wade and Bosh – both of whom indicated they want to remain with the Heat – and try to win more championships for Miami.

Positive that Wade and Bosh want to stay in Miami, Riley acknowledged James "has the right to do whatever he wants to do" and needs time to get away from basketball to consider his options.

But Riley also said, "I didn't come down here 19 years ago for a quick trip to South Beach and a sun tan. … I don't think they did either."

Riley metaphorically did what James is so good at on the court: He threw a pass and put the ball in James' court.

What is James going to do? Stay or go? Riley implored him to stay by putting the heavy on James. It was a strong-armed tactic.

GALLERY: Top 25 potential free agents

Knicks star Carmelo Anthony, right, and Heat star LeBron James both opted out of their contracts this offseason and are big catches on the market. HoopsHype.com ranks the 20 best free agents for the summer. Steve Mitchell, USA TODAY Sports

19. C Spencer Hawes. Last team: Cavaliers. Status: Signed with Clippers (four years, $23 million). Hawes had decent stats as a starter. He would be a nice rotation center for a contender. David Richard, USA TODAY Sports

18. SF Evan Turner. Last team: Pacers. Status: Unrestricted. Turner was really filling the stat sheet in Philadelphia until he was moved to Indiana, where he didn't play much of a role. That trade will cost him millions in free agency. Brad Mills Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

17. SG Avery Bradley. Last team: Celtics. Status: Re-signed (four years, $32 million). Bradley will make a lot of money based on his defensive prowess alone. He has shown flashes of a more refined offensive game under coach Brad Stevens. John Geliebter, USA TODAY Sports

16. SF Trevor Ariza. Last team: Wizards. Status: Signed with Rockets (four years, $32 million). The long, athletic swingman with good defensive skills and an improved perimeter game was central to Washington's success this season. Brad Mills, USA TODAY Sports

15. PG Isaiah Thomas. Last team: Kings. Status: Sign-and-trade to Suns (four years, $27 million). Is Thomas a new and improved Nate Robinson? He's able to score in bunches, but is not a great playmaker. Thomas put together a great season for a bad team. Kelley L. Cox, USA TODAY Sports

14. C Marcin Gortat. Last team: Wizards. Status: Re-signed (five years, $60 million). The run-and-jump center finally found a great situation in Washington. There will be no shortage of offers for Gortat. Brian Spurlock, USA TODAY Sports

13. SF Gordon Hayward. Last team: Jazz. Status: Re-signed (four years, $63 million). Utah could end up regretting not signing him to an extension. The athletic and smart Hayward will be in high demand. Kyle Terada, USA TODAY Sports

12. SF Paul Pierce. Last team: Nets. Status: Signed with Wizards (two years, $10.8 million). You want him on the court in crunch time during the playoffs. Pierce could be a quality reserve for a contender next season. Joe Camporeale, USA TODAY Sports

11. SG Lance Stephenson. Last team: Pacers. Status: Signed with Hornets (three years, $27 million). Stephenson has talent, toughness and passion, and his best basketball years are ahead of him, but the antics may scare a few teams away. Steve Mitchell, USA TODAY Sports

10. PF Pau Gasol. Last team: Lakers. Status: Signed with Bulls (three years, $22 million). The Lakers will pretty much start from scratch this summer and we'll have to see if Gasol figures into the team's plans -- or the other way around. Gary A. Vasquez, USA TODAY Sports

8. SF Luol Deng. Last team: Cavaliers. Status: Signed with Heat (two years, $22 million). The Cavaliers may have given away a bunch of draft picks for nothing to get him. Cleveland proved to be a terrible fit for Deng, who could be looking to sign with a contender now. David Richard, USA TODAY Sports

7. PG Eric Bledsoe. Last team: Suns. Status: Restricted. Bledsoe lived up to his mini LeBron reputation in Phoenix. He put up numbers and won in a contract year. Durability is a concern, though. Jerome Miron, USA TODAY Sports

6. PG Kyle Lowry. Last team: Raptors. Status: Re-signed (four years, $48 million). A gritty and aggressive point guard that should have been an All-Star this season, Lowry was the best player in Toronto. John E. Sokolowski, USA TODAY Sports

5. PF Dirk Nowitzki. Last team: Mavericks. Status: Re-signed (three years, $30 million). Nowitzki was back at an All-Star level after a so-so 2012-13 season by his standards. Matthew Emmons, USA TODAY Sports

4. SG Dwyane Wade. Last team: Heat. Status: Re-signed (two years, $31 million). Wade could technically become a free agent, but we pretty much know he's off limits for any team outside Miami. He is still a star player if health permits. Steve Mitchell, USA TODAY Sports

2. SF Carmelo Anthony. Last team: Knicks. Status: Re-signed (five years, $124 million). With some years left in his prime, Melo will draw massive attention should he decide to leave New York -- which is looking like a feasible scenario with the way things have gone in the Big Apple. Russell Isabella, USA TODAY Sports

1. SF LeBron James. Last team: Heat. Status: Signed with Cavaliers (two years, $42 million). The four-time MVP and two-time NBA champion is already one of the top players of all time. His decision can potentially alter the landscape of the NBA. He would make a contender out of any NBA team. Derick E. Hingle, USA TODAY Sports

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But Riley is savvy. He knew what, when and how he wanted to say what he did. It was a well-planned strategy for Thursday's news conference, but it was risky when it came to his best player. Did Riley motivate James or alienate him? Riley doesn't do much without serious consideration so he believes he appealed to James.

"The important thing is we want all three to come back," Riley said.

Riley said Heat owner Micky Arison is not afraid of the punitive luxury tax and "will do anything to get those guys to come back."

Riley didn't rule out the notion of landing a fourth superstar (read: Carmelo Anthony), calling that idea a pipedream while saying 2010 was a pipedream, too.

He said the Spurs looked inward after losing the 2013 Finals to Miami and wants the Heat to do the same. But he knows he needs to add better players. He didn't call it a rebuild. He said Miami needed to retool.

Riley said he drank Johnnie Walker Blue with his wife Chris and spun records listening to "lyrics, quotes, messages … those kind of things."

A sampling of the Ingram's Just Once lyrics:

"I did my best but I guess my best wasn't good enough'Cause here we are back where we were beforeSeems nothing ever changes, we're back to being strangersWondering if we ought a stay or head on out the door"

Whether James was watching or not, no doubt he will soon hear the message.